It has been shown that involvement in cooking during childhood has a positive influence on two factors of independence (cooperative interpersonal relationships and life management) in university students. Focusing on junior high and high school students, we hypothesized that their involvement in cooking would influence their independence (independence in daily life and social independence). A questionnaire survey was administered to 1,415 junior high and high school students (272 junior high school boys, 204 junior high school girls, 525 high school boys, and 414 high school girls). Path analysis, with social independence as the objective variable, indicated that inclination toward cooking and cooking skills, related to the home food environment, influences social independence through household life independence in daily life and self-esteem. The results suggest that involvement in cooking during junior high and high school may influence social independence, thus supporting the hypothesis.

  Objective: This study aimed to enhance youth dietary habits through color-focused nutrition education, exploring the relationship between food color variety/frequency and dietary intake.

  Methods: Pre- and post-education dietary surveys were conducted using dietary records and smartphone meal image surveys. The effectiveness of education was assessed based on adherence to Japanese Food Guide Spinning Top.

  Results: Among young women, frequencies of red, green, orange, and beige foods increased, with intake of fish and meat dishes, vegetable dishes, milk and milk products, and fruits approaching recommended levels. Meals with a greater variety of colors such as red, green, yellow, orange, white, black, brown, and beige (at least four colors per meal) had higher intake of vegetable dishes and fruits compared to meals with fewer colors. In young men, only beige intake increased, without significant changes in overall food intake.

  Discussion: Nutrition education positively impacted meal color variety among young women, aiding in dietary goal attainment, though gender differences in effectiveness were observed.

  By examining the historical circumstances through which the profession of wedding MC came into being, we attempted to discover the latent functions of this profession. I decided to call the people who organized weddings before it became a profession “Sahainin” and compiled examples of people who performed this role and organized them into four groups. These “Sahainin” converged around the 1960s, when weddings underwent a period of major change. For example, the venue where the wedding took place and the form of the ceremony changed, and wedding officiants began to take on the role of “Sahainin”. Through an analysis of these historical changes, we believe that there are three latent functions that wedding MCs have. These are “understanding the importance of ritual rules” “playing a role” and “stabilizing social relationships”. The wedding MCs currently working may not necessarily be doing these things clearly and consciously, but it is assumed that they are carrying them out functioning strongly subconsciously.

  Light plays an important role in plant growth. It is known that not only the intensity but also the distribution of light (light quality) hitting the plants influences qualitative changes such as height and leaf development. Far-red light-intercepting nets are commercially available as agricultural material that can alter light quality. In this study, we used this far-red light-intercepting net to cultivate indigo, a plant used as a natural dye, and observed its growth changes. As a result, leaves of indigo covered with the net grew darker compared to those grown under normal conditions, and the measurements by a chlorophyll meter (SPAD-502Plus) showed a higher number, indicating a higher chlorophyll content. Additionally, indigo covered with the net showed a higher dyeing intensity when applied to dyed silk fabric. Furthermore, even under drought conditions, the leaves of covered indigo remained fresh without drying out for an extended period. These results suggest that far-red light-intercepting nets may have positive effects on the growth and dyeing properties of indigo.